Furnace Cleaning
- Thread starter SkyRider
- Start date
Cycleguy007
Banned
I get mine serviced every year... The way it was explained to me- there is a sensor that gets carbon build up of something like that and doesn't turn on properly after awhile...
I don't think so - it's a money grab. Make sure you change your filter as required.
Pretty much right on the money,,,, The main purpose of a clean air filter is to protect your equipment,,, cleaning your air is a second. A clogged air filter will reduce the air flow over the heat exchanger causing it the run hotter or even hit the high temp limit switch. If this keeps happening you will shorten the life of the heat exchanger (cracks). Also the unit will run longer to heat your house with a clogged filter...
If its running fine and you always keep the filter clean you should be able to skip the service.
So changing your filter often yourself really does pay for itself.
I was told once by a family friend who is in the business not to use those super efficient air cleaners from 3MFiltrete. They block out so much dust and allergens because they reduce the air flow to the point that the furnace has to work harder to push the air through. Not sure how true this is but i does seem to make sense.
But is it cheaper to replace the blower fins once a decade than to pay a cleaning fee every year for 10 years and still have 10 year old blower fins?
Query: What in blazes are blower fins?
All you need do is vacuum clean the dust/dirt out. It's not difficult. In my first house the people before never changed their furnace filters. They were filthy. I cleaned up and changed them regularly but the damage was already done, the blower motor burned out back in 1979. Got a new electic motor, cost $69 then, put it in myself, it was easy and never had a problem again with that old furnace while living in that house.
Same with the next house I moved into. In this house the furnace had proper PM and all I did was vacuum the insides out when they got dirty, oil the motor and grease the blower bearings yearly and change filters when needed and never had a bit of trouble with it. It was over 30 yrs old when I replaced it with a new high efficient furnace and central air a few years ago that has run trouble free with only one checkup that was under warranty. Paying for yearly cleaning/checkups are a ripoff.
You are correct sir!
A newer furnace will have a flame sensor - basically a steel rod that the flame fires upon. Through the magic of science (or is it the science of magic, I can never remember) the steel rod exposed to flame will create a DC millivolt electrical current that essentially tells the gas valve that a flame is present & to keep the gas flowin'. Eventually that flame rod will get carbonization or oxidization buildup on it, and the DC millivolt signal will be too weak, and voila, the gas valve doesnt get the signal its expecting so it shuts off the gasflow......usually with most furnaces you get 3 tries at ignition and then it goes into lockout as a safety precaution. On some furnaces the flame rod is very inaccessible....you've got to dismantle a couple things to get at 'em to clean 'em.
So, if the kid will clean the flame rod, as well as inspect other components (pressure switches, ignitors, ventor/inducer motors and blower motors, etc) for less than $100, it might be a good idea. If all he is going to do is vaccum up surface dust, you can do that yourself.
Cycleguy007
Banned
Thanks Seth! With all these other posts claiming otherwise, I was beginning to believe my furnace was a DUD! What you describe is EXACTLY what the 1st guy told me. The furnace was about 2 years old at the time. I can tell when its about time for a service call, because I will hear the furnace try and start up that 3rd time... (My furnace is in my weight training room.) It also has those sensor lights which tells me the burner failed to ignite...
Call a couple of HVAC outfits to see what they charge; that'll tell you if his discount's real. Buy the service and watch the process. As others have said, there's simple stuff that you can do, like changing filters and vacuuming dust. Since this is a neighbour-to-neighbour favour kinda deal, he's may be receptive to a shorter time (even for a few less bucks) next year if you take care of the simple stuff.
But high efficiency forced-air furnaces are very complex, and there's lots you don't want going wrong in the dead of a winter night. Preventive maintenence can help, but a lot of stuff is factory-sealed, replace not repair that you can't even inspect. Having a good relationship with a service guy could be golden.
But high efficiency forced-air furnaces are very complex, and there's lots you don't want going wrong in the dead of a winter night. Preventive maintenence can help, but a lot of stuff is factory-sealed, replace not repair that you can't even inspect. Having a good relationship with a service guy could be golden.
The real arguement for cleaning the furnace is this: Some of the companies will promise to come out and fix your furnace if it fails.
Good Luck finding someone to fix your furnace in an emergency otherwise. A house can get really cold between Friday evening, and the first day of business on Monday. I've looked, and miraculously, there are no 24/7 repair outfits where I live, unless you sign up for the maintenance contracts.
Good Luck finding someone to fix your furnace in an emergency otherwise. A house can get really cold between Friday evening, and the first day of business on Monday. I've looked, and miraculously, there are no 24/7 repair outfits where I live, unless you sign up for the maintenance contracts.
Cycleguy007
Banned
I now have a service contract with Reliance to maintain our water heater, furnace and AC... costs me $12.00 month and they DO service on weekends and holidays. (I had my water heater replaced on Dec 26th 2 years ago...)
Cycleguy007
Banned
I laugh at the guys who come out with strong opinions who know fuck all... what is this? The internet?
Cleaning and a service lookover/checkup by a REAL furnace technician is worthwhile every couple of years IMO.
In addition to the items mentioned, in a high efficiency furnace the condensate drain for the condensing heat exchanger can become obstructed. This results in water backing up into the exhaust blower. This will cause the furnace to cycle off and on and possibly lead to a damaged blower.
FOr those handy guys who will not pay for a checkup, tlook for the hose/pipe leading from the furnace to the floor drain and clean it out. It is like the air conditioner drain line.
Yep... this has happened to my furnace as well... service guy from Reliance took care of that as well... No additional charges! (Both parts and labour is covered by my service contract...)
(No I DO NOT work for Reliance... LOL!)
My furnace guy, who is also my neighbour's son, said he will charge me $80 for cleaning/checking my high efficiency furnace. He said there is no point checking the A/C because it is too cool at this time of the year (until next June or July). He checked the A/C a couple of years ago for free because he was visiting his mom just down the street and dropped by my place. My water heater is still a rental (should I exercise the buy option?).
Yep.
They did the same with mine. The HE furnace exhaust vents through a new small plastic pipe in the rear of the house.
Cycleguy007
Banned
My house is relatively new... (Built in 2001) so I don't have a chimney... It has the aforementioned HE furnace and also a HE water heater that just vent out of the side of the house by a 2-3" ABS tube...
furnace cleaning
no matter how new the furnace is to keep it running correctly you should have yearly service
no matter how new the furnace is to keep it running correctly you should have yearly service
Make sure the Company is Reputable!
I'm fairly mechanically inclined and can do most of my own repairs & PM.
A tradesmen buddy who works in HVAC, about 20 yrs ago came over and cleaned my old furnace and showed me all that was needed to be done. Old furnaces were pretty foolproof and very easy to service. He told me they can easily last 40-50 or more years. He told me to clean mine or have someone clean it every 10 years.
This is not true with new HE furnaces.
I had one very bad experience with a well known WNY Furnace Company about 10 years ago. They had a 'special' so instead of me doing it, figured they could do it and also wanted to hear what they have to say about the new HE models. Of course they wanted to sell me a new furnace and central air unit.
The tech was very friendly and had no problems letting me watch what he was doing. I pretended it was all new to me. Well it looked like he was doing everything correctly, just like my buddy at work had showed me 10 yrs earlier.
After about 45 minutes he was done. He then said this 30 yr furnace was getting old and should be replaced because 'it could go at any time'! Which I found strange. This went completely against what my buddy told me but I just listened to him. I thought, hey he just wants to sell a new HVAC unit.
Well everything seemed normal for about 2 weeks. Luckily I happened to be in the basement working when the furnace normally cycled on and a fire erupted! It made a strange sound, I looked over and flames were shooting up on the furnace back. I quickly shut it down and the fire went out! Took off the back plate to see what happened and found that when the tech was done cleaning the furnace he didn't mount the 3, 18" gas jets correctly! Instead of 'locking' them in place, he simply rested them on top of a back rail! Over time normal blower motor vibration caused the 3 gas jet nozzles to fall down a couple inches causing this fire which if it had lasted longer would have burned out the furnace wiring and internal components destroying the furnace! I correctly reinstalled those 3 gas nozzles and properly locked them in place.
Told workers and neighbors what had happened and warned them about dealing with this company. Up till then I had thought they were reputable in WNY. Now I'll have nothing to do with them.
I'm fairly mechanically inclined and can do most of my own repairs & PM.
A tradesmen buddy who works in HVAC, about 20 yrs ago came over and cleaned my old furnace and showed me all that was needed to be done. Old furnaces were pretty foolproof and very easy to service. He told me they can easily last 40-50 or more years. He told me to clean mine or have someone clean it every 10 years.
This is not true with new HE furnaces.
I had one very bad experience with a well known WNY Furnace Company about 10 years ago. They had a 'special' so instead of me doing it, figured they could do it and also wanted to hear what they have to say about the new HE models. Of course they wanted to sell me a new furnace and central air unit.
The tech was very friendly and had no problems letting me watch what he was doing. I pretended it was all new to me. Well it looked like he was doing everything correctly, just like my buddy at work had showed me 10 yrs earlier.
After about 45 minutes he was done. He then said this 30 yr furnace was getting old and should be replaced because 'it could go at any time'! Which I found strange. This went completely against what my buddy told me but I just listened to him. I thought, hey he just wants to sell a new HVAC unit.
Well everything seemed normal for about 2 weeks. Luckily I happened to be in the basement working when the furnace normally cycled on and a fire erupted! It made a strange sound, I looked over and flames were shooting up on the furnace back. I quickly shut it down and the fire went out! Took off the back plate to see what happened and found that when the tech was done cleaning the furnace he didn't mount the 3, 18" gas jets correctly! Instead of 'locking' them in place, he simply rested them on top of a back rail! Over time normal blower motor vibration caused the 3 gas jet nozzles to fall down a couple inches causing this fire which if it had lasted longer would have burned out the furnace wiring and internal components destroying the furnace! I correctly reinstalled those 3 gas nozzles and properly locked them in place.
Told workers and neighbors what had happened and warned them about dealing with this company. Up till then I had thought they were reputable in WNY. Now I'll have nothing to do with them.
